UK judge to mull Exxon's freeze on PDVSA assets

By Tom Bergin

LONDON, March 6 (Reuters) - A UK judge has finished hearing arguments on whether to lift a $12 billion freeze on Venezuelan assets granted to Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) but will not issue a ruling until late next week at the earliest. Gordon Pollock, lawyer for state oil company PDVSA, the subject of the freeze, said the judge had given no indication as to what way he would rule before he retired on Thursday.

However, Venezuelan Ambassador Samuel Moncada told Reuters the judge had informed the parties in private that he did not accept one of Exxon's arguments, namely that the case was comparable to an earlier one in which a freeze was upheld.

The world's largest non-government controlled oil company by market value, Exxon convinced an English court in January to freeze $12 billion of assets belonging to PDVSA pending arbitration over an oil project which Exxon lost in President Hugo Chavez's nationalisation drive.

But PDVSA appealed, saying the court had no jurisdiction, the amount was excessive and that there was no need for a freeze because PDVSA was not trying to put its assets beyond reach.

Venezuela's oil minister, Rafael Ramirez, described Exxon's move as "legal terrorism", a reference Pollock reaffirmed in court on Thursday.

"They are acting like the Al-Qaeda of the oil world," he said.

On Wednesday, OPEC expressed support for Venezuela and its national oil company PDVSA in exercising its sovereign rights.

Pollock said the asset freeze was simply a negotiating tactic on the part of Exxon and that PDVSA's reputation would be enhanced internationally if it ignored it and acted in contempt of the UK courts.